People's Democracy

On Oil For Food Inquiry

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) issued the following statement on October 30, 2005.

THE inquiry committee headed by a former US official which has looked into the Iraq oil-for-food programme sponsored by the United Nations has come up with its final report. The report has charged a large number of companies and individuals in various countries of having paid kickbacks to get contracts for buying oil from Iraq and selling goods to that country.

In this connection the names of a number of Indian companies and the Congress party and foreign minister are mentioned. The government of India should investigate the matter. It is necessary to get further evidence and details before reaching any conclusions.

Iraq, which was under brutal sanctions for more than a decade, resorted to various methods to deal with the situation. It should be noted in this context that the United States and the other western countries, who were instrumental in imposing the brutal sanctions for eleven years, are biased against all those who had dealings with the then Iraqi government.

These circumstances must also be kept in mind when the facts and evidence are examined.